http://moneylistens.com So tell it where to go Fri, 05 Sep 2008 05:24:56 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en “…there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns—the ones we don’t know we don’t know.”—Donald Rumsfeld Doesn't this characterize how we ... http://moneylistens.com/budgets/finances-the-unknown-unknown/ a:  A dividend reinvestment plan b:  The West Virginia Smart529 college plan c:  ING Direct Online Savings Account d:  The grocery store All of these are good choices, but the grocery store might provide the greatest return on your investment.  Every time I go grocery shopping the prices are higher.  We've all read ... http://moneylistens.com/spending-less/wheres-the-best-place-to-invest-250/ I usually have 3 or 4 books around the house that I'm reading. I pick up whatever I feel like at the time. It works best if the books aren't too similar. Otherwise, I get confused. Last week I read 2 books that seemed about as far apart ... http://moneylistens.com/goals/its-not-about-the-money-living-rich-by-spending-smart/ Have you heard of the 80/20 Principle?  It's a great, quick, down and dirty way to live.  You can use it in absolutely any situation.  It works 80% of the time, and the 20% of the time it doesn't work, it doesn't really matter whether it works or not.  Here ... http://moneylistens.com/inspiration/top-ten-8020-principles/ Don't know much about history   Don't know much biology   Don't know much about a science book   Don't know much about the French I took Sam Cooke wrote the song "Wonderful World" in 1960.  Go ahead, take a minute and hum along.  I'll wait. How much do you remember about your history or biology classes?  Maybe ... http://moneylistens.com/educate-yourself/are-you-financially-literate/ The stark truth about managing our money these days is that we are mostly on our own. This was the first line of a column in the New York Times a few months ago and it has stuck with me. In our parents' days, managing money was easy.  My mom and dad ... http://moneylistens.com/inspiration/simple-saving/ When I took Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace Class he had one lesson on investments.  He was careful to explain that he was not an investment expert.  Most of his advice concerned saving regularly and putting money away in IRAs and 401(k)s.  But several times he said that his investments in ... http://moneylistens.com/dave-ramsey/recency-bias-portfolio-performance/ Next to our home and cars, food is the biggest bite out of our budgets.  Since we're always going to the grocery store, we're always complaining about how much food costs.  Just how much is reasonable to spend on food anyway?  When in doubt, the IRS has the answer.  ... http://moneylistens.com/food/how-much-should-we-spend-on-food/ When I was I kid I loved going shopping for school supplies.  Holding the list, checking off the items-- it was one of the few times I got to make choices of my own. Did I want a blue pencil box this year?  The highlight was the lunch box.  Snoopy ... http://moneylistens.com/saving/save-money-on-school-supplies/ For all the cows you've loved before... Friday, July 11, 2008 is Cow Appreciation Day.  Anyone who dresses like a cow gets a free Combo Meal.  Go for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.  Or all three.  Even if you're not up for a full body costume, just wear a mask or spots ... http://moneylistens.com/food/cow-appreciation-day-at-chick-fil-a/